Tag Archives: World War 2

I really enjoyed this book. I love the way you get drawn into the characters and ate up the pages eager to see how it all worked out.

It’s set in the second world war and instead of centring around England and Germany it firmly focuses on Denmark and how the Nazi occupation brought about change in the country.

It surrounds efforts made by the English Secret Services and Danish Rebels keen to take back control of their own country. With Bomber Command suffering devastating loss of planes, the powers that be in England look to ways of saving the fleet, in order to draw German forces from the Russian onslaught to change the direction of the war.

Whereas most secret service employees and military masterminds are men this book has a woman leading the charge. Being of English Heritage but fluent in Danish sets her apart from the competition and elevates her to a position previously unheard of.

The lengths she goes to in order to provide intelligence to the English Government through her network of Nightwatchmen in Denmark provides the answer to how to protect Bomber Commands precious planes.

In the end the secret is placed in the hands of the most unlikely pair to go up against such mortal danger. If they can manage to get the secret photo’s out of Denmark from right under the noses of the Germans it could change the fate of the war forever.

All in all a good book to finish the year. I would recommend it and as usual Ken Follett did not disappoint.

If you’re looking for somewhere to go on a torrential raining Bank Holiday Monday then Bletchley Park is a good bet. We got a little bit wet moving between buildings but it was mostly inside so not too bad.

I’ve always found the history of wars interesting. Without the German invention of the Enigma Machine we wouldn’t have needed to create the ‘Bombes’ to crack the codes.

Sadly if the world was waiting for my assistance to crack the codes we’d be under the rule of Hitler by now. My brain just doesn’t work in the way required to crack such a complex code.

It was truly fascinating to stand in front of one of the sample machines and look at the wiring set up. It’s like a big Mechano set with thousands of wires, so many you can’t begin to tell where they start and end. I’d hate to have the responsibility of wiring them all up!

I loved the statue of Alan Turing it was really inspiring.

The Mansion House was really beautiful and had a classic library. I loved the ornate gold ceilings of the ballroom and the wooden panelling. They also had marble columns and a stained glass roof over the reception room. I find gargoyles fascinating and there is a pair of them guarding the entrance.

I’ve always dreamed of living in a house like that with a ballroom and a library, maybe I did in a former life!

You get an annual pass to the park so you don’t need to fit everything in all in one day, if you live locally enough to travel back.

The work of the people of Bletchley Park during World War 2 cannot be underestimated, it is said they reduced the length of the war but at least 2 years and they deserve to have their stories told and their place in history remembered.

It’s fitting they have their own memorial. See if you can crack their code!